Democratic socialist Zohran Mamdani has sashayed into New York City’s mayoral office, brushing off a $22 million fireworks display funded by 26 billionaires who clearly overestimated the allure of their checkbooks. The man who promised city-run grocery stores, free public transit, and universal childcare just turned America’s financial titans into the punchline of their own expensive joke.
Mamdani’s victory lap started with a platform so populist it had Wall Street reaching for the smelling salts. Free buses for all? Check. Taxpayer-funded toddler timeouts? Double check. And yet, here he is, mayor-elect as of November 7, 2025, ready to unpack his progressive playbook on January 1.
The opposition read like a Forbes 400 family reunion gone wrong. Michael Bloomberg, the man who once thought $1 billion could buy a third term, dropped $8.3 million on Andrew Cuomo’s campaign coffer, as if sprinkling fairy dust on a flailing candidate would make the math work.
Bill Ackman, hedge fund wizard and Twitter philosopher, chipped in $1.75 million, perhaps betting that market volatility applied to voter moods too. Spoiler: It didn’t. His funds fueled ads painting Mamdani as the boogeyman of balanced budgets, but New Yorkers apparently preferred the version with complimentary childcare.
Then there was the Lauder clan, Estée’s heirs slathering $2.6 million across super PACs, because nothing says “protect our legacy” like bankrolling a guy named Andrew. Joe Gebbia, Airbnb’s cofounder, Airbnb’d $3 million into the anti-Mamdani Airbnb, hoping to spare short-term rentals from long-term rent controls. Short version: Guests checked out early.
Over half the cash cascade – a cool $13.6 million – splashed down before Mamdani even locked the Democratic nod on June 24. Bloomberg’s pre-primary bonanza to Fix The City, Inc. alone could have renovated every pothole in the five boroughs, twice. Instead, it just fixed Cuomo’s ego, temporarily.
Netflix’s Reed Hastings and media mogul Barry Diller each tossed $250,000 into the ring, as if scripting a drama where the underdog loses. Steve Wynn, casino kingpin, gambled $500,000 in October, rolling the dice on voter roulette. Oil heir John Hess poured $1 million over months, lubricating the anti-socialist machine with fossil-fueled fervor.
Sixteen of these deep-pocket donors call NYC home, proving you can take the billionaire out of Brooklyn but not the panic out of their portfolios. Daniel Loeb’s $775,000 hedge? Trimmed to zero. Alice Walton’s $200,000 dabble? Discounted to defeat.
Mamdani didn’t flinch. At an October 13 rally, he leaned into the billionaire barrage with a zinger: “Billionaires like Bill Ackman and Ronald Lauder have poured millions into this race because they say we pose an existential threat. I am here to admit something: They are right.” The crowd roared; the donors probably reached for antacids.
Post-ballot, the tune shifted faster than a stock tip. Ackman, fresh off his fiscal fumble, posted on X: “Now you have a big responsibility. If I can help NYC, just let me know what I can do.” Translation: “Oops, my bad – want some pointers on not tanking the economy?”
JPMorgan’s Jamie Dimon, who once quipped Mamdani was “more Marxist than socialist,” softened quicker than butter in a city-run fridge. In a November 5 CNN chat, he pledged openness: “If I find it productive, I’ll continue to do it,” vowing aid to “any mayor, any governor.” Productive, indeed – like loaning a ladder to the guy climbing your wall.
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